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ON Semiconductor, for those unfamiliar, makes the little bits of silicon that make…well, just about everything work. Specifically, they’re into power and sensing chips. This puts them smack-dab in the middle of two rather large trends: electrification and automation. They’ve been putting a lot of effort into silicon carbide (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN) chips. Now, I’m no physicist, but apparently, these materials are a bit like the Usain Bolt of semiconductors. They can handle higher temperatures and voltages, making them ideal for electric vehicles, renewable energy, and all sorts of industrial applications. GaN, meanwhile, is speedy, efficient, and good for AI data centers. It’s a bit like upgrading from a horse-drawn carriage to a rocket ship.

Natera. Thirteen percent of his portfolio. That’s a commitment, or a desperation move, depending on your view. Genetic testing. Women’s health, cancer, the usual. They’re losing money now, but promise high-teens growth. Everyone promises growth. The margins are expanding, they say. Sixty-one point eight to sixty-four point nine percent. That’s a rounding error dressed up as a trend. They’ve got pricing power, naturally. When you’re dealing with health, people tend to pay. Their oncology tests are up fifty-four percent. Cancer is a growth industry. Signatera, their blood test, is supposed to be the key. Personalized medicine. Sounds expensive.

Progeny 3 has, in effect, removed itself from the game. The position now represents a negligible fraction of their reported assets. One imagines the portfolio managers, not celebrating, but simply…adjusting. The world continues, indifferent to their calculations.

With a decline of approximately twenty per cent this year, the question arises: is Palantir a prudent investment, a regrettable indulgence, or merely something to be observed with detached amusement?

The foundation of this empire, however, rests upon the business of insurance. GEICO, a household name, operates under its banner, alongside other policies bearing the Hathaway name. Indeed, the skillful management of premiums, and the subsequent investment of those funds, forms a considerable part of their operating model. One cannot but observe, however, that even the most established houses must occasionally consider the currents of change. Mr. Buffett, during his tenure, and Mr. Jain, overseeing the insurance division, alluded to a certain lagging behind in the realm of digital innovation, a vulnerability keenly felt in the face of younger, more agile competitors.

This was not a sudden impulse, but a deliberate entry. Beck Bode now holds approximately 2.93% of its reported U.S. equity assets – $601.19 million – in Churchill Downs stock. A small portion, perhaps, but a portion nonetheless. Consider the firm’s other holdings: $31.75 million in NVDA, $23.66 million in CAH, $22.73 million in CEG, $21.50 million in ANET, and $21.26 million in ROKU. These are not the holdings of a gambler, but of someone who believes, however cautiously, in the underlying value of the assets.

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It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a company in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a temporary setback. And so it has proven with these two titans. The recent sell-off, a tempest in a teacup if ever there was one, has presented us with a chance to acquire shares at valuations that would have been deemed fantastical but a season ago. Let us not mistake this for prudence, however; it is merely the market indulging in a fit of the vapors.

Don’t get me wrong, AXP is solid. It’s…flirty. It knows how to attract a crowd. But Visa? Visa is the quiet one in the corner, efficiently processing transactions while everyone else is busy peacocking. And honestly, in this market, I’ll take efficient over flashy any day.